Paul Lambert out as Ukip’s head of communications

The Ukip wars have taken another casualty: the party’s head of communications Paul 'Gobby' Lambert. Guido reports that the 'press office has declared war on the leader' and it appears Lambert is a casualty of the fighting.

Lambert was brought in from the BBC last year to run the party's media operation but there have been concerns from those around Farage about his performance in the role. Others in the party suggest he wanted to leave anyway after a long and exhausting campaign. From my understanding, Lambert decided he'd had enough and had no desire to renew his contract after the election.

As with Raheem Kassam yesterday, it's not entirely clear if he has been sacked or not. ITV's Chris Ship has spoken to Lambert this afternoon, who said he is currently 'on leave' and won't be returning to Ukip:

Comms chief at @UKIP Paul Lambert tells me he is on leave. But he answers 'no' when I ask if he's coming back

— Chris Ship (@chrisshipitv) May 15, 2015

A senior source in the party suggests Lambert has left the party after briefing against Team Farage over the last 24 hours. Whether this is true or not, he is apparently not the 'senior figure' that Farage was gunning for on Sky News earlier. I understand that Farage was referring to an 'elected figure' in the party — which points the finger towards Douglas Carswell, an MEP or a member of the party's NEC. Lambert has not responded for comment at this time.